Meet the ‘Bucha Witches’ — the all-female fire teams guarding Ukraine’s skies from Russian drones and missiles
The Ukrainian town of Bucha, which became synonymous with Russian war crimes after occupying forces massacred hundreds of civilians there in 2022, is now home to a unique form of resistance. The Bucha Volunteer Territorial Community Formation recently started recruiting all-female mobile fire teams known as the “Witches” and “Valkyries.” Journalists from the Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda spoke with several of these “Bucha Witches” about their decision to take up arms and what it’s like to defend Ukraine’s skies from Russian drones and missiles. Meduza shares a summary of their reporting in English.
Olena ‘Small’
Originally from Lviv, Olena moved to Kyiv in 2023 and began working as a general practitioner at a clinic in Bucha. In June 2024, while driving back from celebrating her 26th birthday in Odesa with her friend Anhelina, she came across an Instagram post recruiting volunteers for the Bucha Territorial Community Formation. Both she and Anhelina decided to enlist in the “Witches” mobile fire group.
Olena had long wanted to join the Defense Forces but struggled to balance her demanding job with military service. Her family has deep military roots: her great-grandfather served in the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, and her great-grandmother was a liaison for them. Her godfather started taking her to the shooting range when she was just five. “At the training center, they let me shoot a Browning [machine gun]. I hit 11 aerial targets with 25 rounds. High accuracy, low ammo use, so the commander said, ‘You’ll be a machine gunner!’” she recalls.
“My goal is to keep people safe and allow them to sleep peacefully. My dream is for the war to end and for everyone to return from the front and captivity,” says Olena.
Valentyna ‘Valkyrie’
Valentyna, a veterinarian by profession, found herself trapped under Russian occupation in her home in the Kyiv region in February 2022. She witnessed the bombing of Hostomel Airport and the shelling of Irpin and Bucha. After three weeks, she managed to escape with seven others, all squeezed into a single car.
Two months ago, Valentyna joined the “Bucha Valkyries” group. During training, she was most anxious about the physical challenges, worrying she wouldn’t be able to complete the obstacle course. In the end, she completed it twice.
“My place is here. This war won’t end without us,” Valentyna says with conviction. “It’s time to stop sitting at home in the kitchen. We can take up arms and defend our land, our community. The men go to the front, and we replace them. And we see that we are capable.”
Anhelina ‘Fast & Furious’
Anhelina earned her call sign for her fast driving — once, while taking a colleague to the range, he joked that he’d lost a few pounds during the ride.
Originally from Lutsk, Anhelina worked as an anesthesiologist in Bucha. During the Russian occupation, she treated many wounded civilians in her operating room, including children. When a “green corridor” was opened, she evacuated with her patients.
In the volunteer territorial defense unit, she drives a pickup truck she calls “Broomstick.” Initially, Anhelina found her new role challenging, as she had no prior military experience.
Her partner volunteered for the Ukrainian infantry at the start of the full-scale Russian invasion. “He worries a lot but he’s supportive. He texts me, ‘Be careful out there. When you get back after an alert, make sure to let me know you’re okay.’ He never tried to stop me [from serving]. He knows we’re both contributing to the same cause,” says Anhelina. “Every time we shoot down a Shahed, it brings me joy and motivates me because that drone won’t hit someone’s home.”
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Yulia ‘Dzyga’
Yulia used to work in a beauty salon in Kyiv. On the fourth day of Russia’s full-scale invasion, she fled to Poland with her child. However, three months later, she returned. “I really wanted to come home. Now, I can’t even explain to myself why I left in the first place. It was a spontaneous decision, probably driven by emotions. I wanted to protect my child’s mental health, but psychologically, it was much worse there than at home,” she says.
Once back, Yulia put on earrings shaped like the famous Mriya (“dream”) aircraft the Russian army destroyed at the beginning of the full-scale invasion and joined the Bucha volunteer unit. She now commands the “Valkyrie” mobile fire group and handles fire adjustments.
“I’m always on the move, juggling everything. That’s why my call sign is ‘Dzyga’ [the Urkainian word for a spinning top]. When I decided to join, my family and friends weren’t surprised because they know me well,” she told journalists.
Yulia admits that she finds civilian life more challenging, surrounded by people who don’t feel the impact of the war. “The guys go to the front and we stay here, defending the sky, our children, and the civilians behind us. What could be more motivating than that?” she asks rhetorically.
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In April 2024, many of the men from the Bucha Volunteer Territorial Community Formation headed for the front lines, leaving around 70 positions vacant.
Two of the “Witches” have also signed contracts with the Ukrainian Armed Forces. One became a fire support platoon commander in an assault battalion, while the other is training to be an officer, preparing to command three multiple launch rocket system crews.
“I see that the women who join us are sometimes even more motivated than the men,” says Colonel Andrii Verlatyi, the 51-year-old chief of staff of the Bucha formation. “Many of them were mothers and caretakers before this, but then those bastards came and destroyed their lives. They awakened a force that was better left untouched. God forbid the Russians come back here! It wouldn’t end well for them, because Ukrainian women are fiercer than men.”
